Jean shares her life long love of sport and excitement for the Anchor Games

This summer as Anchor harnesses our nation’s love of sport and launches the Anchor Games, resident Jean Martin is helping us prove that being active isn’t just for professional athletes at the top of their game. 

Jean lives at St Mary’s care home in Holbrook, Ipswich and has been a keen athlete all her life. 

Now 91 years old, Jean shares how during secondary school she competed in relay running, was a member of both the hockey and netball teams, and frequently competed with other schools. Her speciality was high jump, a discipline she both enjoyed and excelled at, winning several competitions. Beyond her success in track and field, Jean also enjoyed swimming, particularly backstroke and competed at St Matthews Swimming Pool. Jean fondly remembers competing annually at Portman Road Stadium with other schools in Suffolk, a testament to her lifelong commitment to athletics.

To celebrate the array of sporting events that take place each summer, and in recognition of the vital role sport plays in a fulfilled life for many people, at Anchor we’re hosting our very own Anchor Games. An opportunity for residents and colleagues across the country to take part in sporting activities and promote physical wellbeing.

Jean is pleased to be taking part in the Anchor Games, commenting:

I’m taking part in this year’s Anchor Games because I like competition and the feeling of adrenaline you get when you’re trying to win. It’s a great laugh and you feel much better when you get back to your room after being active with friends. I love to try different sports. I’ll be doing bowls and I’m also going to give netball a go. It’s easy to think you can’t get involved or that an activity isn’t for you, but I believe we can all really enjoy trying something new. 

Jean's passion for sports extended beyond her own participation; she has always enjoyed watching the Commonwealth and Olympic Games on TV and her enthusiasm for the Olympics is shared by her family, with her son and grandson attending the 2012 Olympics in London.

I also can’t wait to watch the Olympic Games, and we’ll be keeping the television on to catch all the varied sports!

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